During the working work, managers and business owners are busy dealing with running their businesses. This then results in HR and employment law being put on the back burner, resulting in employers leaving themselves vulnerable.
To prevent this from happening to you, here are the top five mistakes that businesses make:
1. No Contract of Employment
Many companies do not think contracts are important or do not like to give a new employee a contract as they feel that they cannot then dismiss an employee if it does not work out. This is not the case. Employees can be terminated for misconduct or performance issues with or without a contract; the same procedure will need to be followed.
Regardless of the company’s thoughts on contracts of employment, it is a legal requirement that an employee is provided with a written statement of terms and particulars of employment within two months of the employee’s start date.
By entering in to a contract of employment, the company can set out restrictive covenants, longer notice periods and other terms that would be beneficial to them.
Following on from this, if a contract of employment is entered, it is important that if the employee’s role changes that the contract is updated to reflect this.
2. Not Handling Issues Promptly
Not everyone can get on all of the time, and this can then lead to staff grumbles and grievances being raised. Very often employers do not deal with a grievance when it is raised, and this then escalates. It is imperative that businesses deal with issues quickly and efficiently.
3. Failure to Follow Policies and Procedure
Business will have a staff handbook prepared and let staff know where this can be found, then the managers forget about its existence. And when an employee then needs to be disciplined, the Disciplinary Procedure is completely ignored.
It is important that the disciplinary policy is followed. If an employer fails to follow the ACAS Code of Practice in relation to a disciplinary, the employment tribunal may increase the amount of compensation payable to the employee by up to 25%.
4. Not Checking in with Employees off on Long Term Sick
Many businesses are afraid to deal with employees who are on long term sick leave as they either think they cannot dismiss them or for fear of an employment tribunal claim being brought.
Employees on long term sick do have their own risks, but employers can deal with these provided a fair process is dealt with. Don’t forget that employees on sick leave still continue to accrue their annual leave.
5. Not Dealing with Performance Issues
Many employers either ignore performance issues or simply dismiss an employee. The ACAS Code of Practice sets out how performance issues should be dealt with and a failure to deal with these correctly could lead to a dismissal being unfair. Poor performance can easily be dealt with and thus limit any potential claim.
Get Employment Law Advice from Howells
For more advice on employment law or to discuss any of the above topics in more detail, please get in touch with our employment solicitors who would be happy to help you.
